by Translator: Pokka; Author: 我本纯洁 (I Am Pure); Licensed From: Migu
Not far away, Yuan Ling shivered in fear as he cried out, "I-it's Duo Ji, the old bastard..."
Without any hesitation whatsoever, he turned tail and fled at the highest speed possible. The other surviving Dragon Ascension Realm experts also started fleeing, completely abandoning Linggu Haonan.
"Thirteen Eagles, kill every single one of them!" a murderous voice commanded.
"Yes, young lady," answered 13 voices.
Then, 13 figures streaked across the sky, chasing after the fleeing people. Eagle cries reverberated throughout the area while massive eagle wings blanketed the sky and covered the sun, making it look like a storm was coming. Not far away, Chen Jiayan, Du Xuanhao, Murong Qing, and the others were completely stupefied.
"W-who are those people? They are so strong!" exclaimed one of the Chen Clan Emperors.
"Don't talk. We need to leave," said Chen Jiayan as he dragged Chen Zilong and Li Yaxuan away.
The others did not dare wait around and left as well, moving even faster than when they had come. However, none of them were able to get far before a one-armed figure appeared before them. A massive forcefield shrouded them, bringing them to a halt. The suffocating sensation was too much for them, and they nearly started dropping from the sky. It was a sense of oppression on both their body and soul, something extremely unbearable.
"L-lord, this has nothing to do with us!" said Chen Jiayan with great difficulty.
"It doesn't matter. All of you will wait. My young master will decide your fate. If anything bad happens to my young master, all of you can depart to the afterlife alongside him," said Duo Ji indifferently.
His heart was filled with fury at this moment. The sect master had entrusted the young master to him, yet he had failed to protect the young master. He even had the urge to commit suicide in shame.
Xiang Shaoyun was no longer falling from the sky. A nimble figure had appeared and caught him. This figure was a mighty demonic cat with a smooth and glossy black coat of fur with a tiny patch of green on its neck. It had a pair of translucent eyes that looked like precious gems. The eyes seemed capable of seeing through everything and dazing all who stared into them. With its strong body, it looked more like a tiger than a cat. This was an extremely rare mutated green-eyed demonic cat.
Seated on the cat was an incredibly beautiful woman. She was dressed in a black muslin outfit. She possessed a face beautiful enough to cause the fall of kingdoms and enchanting enough to tug at the soul of any man. The skin of the exposed part of her arms looked as fair and tender as the skin of a baby, giving one an urge to gently caress them.
She was none other than Xiang Shaoyun's sister, Ye Chaomu. Why was her surname different from Xiang Shaoyun? That was because she was an adopted child Xiang Shaoyun's father had raised since young and was not his actual biological sister. However, the relationship between them was far closer than regular siblings.
Currently, Ye Chaomu's arms were wrapped around Xiang Shaoyun as tears dripped out her eyes. Her hand gently rested on his pale face as she wept, "Big brother!"
A boundless melancholy and pain filled that voice.
There was a saying that an elder brother was akin to one's father. For Ye Chaomu, she respected Xiang Shaoyun like a father and loved him like a lover. With Xiang Shaoyun in her arms, scenes from their childhood appeared in her mind one after another.
"Big brother, I'm so hungry! I want to eat Grandpa Wei's red peach! It looks so good!"
"You glutton. That peach is more precious to Grandpa Wei than his life! But since you want to eat it, even at the risk of getting cooked alive by Grandpa Wei, your big brother will get you the peach!"
"Big brother, I really like that flying crane!"
"You do? Your big brother will get someone to capture it and turn it into your toy!"
"Big brother, w-why am I growing fat on my chest? I feel so ugly!"
"Oh? Don't worry. Let your big brother give you a rub. You won't look ugly anymore."
...
"Big brother, I don't want to go cultivate with that person. I want to stay by your side. We can continue reading and sleeping and doing everything together. Wouldn't that be good?"
"Your big brother does not want you to leave either, but according to Father, that person is very powerful and famous. Go cultivate with him. In the future, you will be strong enough to tame beasts for your big brother."
"But I need to be away for no fewer than five years. I'm afraid that big brother will forget me then! I'll be very sad if that happens!"
"Don't worry. Even if your big brother forgets everyone in the world, I won't forget my little Mu Mu."
Chapter 328: That is a Ten Millennia Stoneclock Milk
Ye Chaomu's tears dropped onto Xiang Shaoyun's face. Sensing the chilly tears, Xiang Shaoyun opened his eyes slightly.
He could not see clearly who the person before him was, and he only instinctively looked at Linggu Haonan and said weakly, "Be...beat...him..."
"Don't worry, big brother. I will make sure he dies a horrible death," promised Ye Chaomu as she gripped Xiang Shaoyun's hand tightly. She then looked at a certain direction and bellowed, "Where are you, First Eagle? Come and slaughter him for me!"
At those words, a person flew back on an eagle mount. The eagle flapped its wings and with a flash, that person appeared beside Ye Chaomu and answered, "Yes, young lady."
Xiang Shaoyun added weakly, "Pre...preserve his...body."
Then, he fell unconscious.
"Is big brother going to keep him around so he can personally take revenge later?" Ye Chaomu muttered before saying to First Eagle, "Preserve his body. My big brother will decide what to do with him later."
First Eagle acknowledged the command and flew toward Linggu Haonan who was struggling to escape. He had been so slow to escape because his soul was currently in an intense battle with Devouring Ghost.
He was a ninth-stage Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator and already possessed a powerful soul. Thus, not even Devouring Ghost could so easily defeat him. Furthermore, he had the home advantage battling in his body, and Devouring Ghost might be the one getting devoured instead.
"Who are you, you old bastard? Get out of here or I'll destroy you!"
"You are not capable of that. Besides, young master's reinforcements are here. Both of us will die together."
"Hehe, you won't succeed. I will destroy you after leaving this place."
"You won't even be able to leave. To do that, you will have to first deal with me."
...
When First Eagle arrived, Linggu Haonan's mount, the seven-tailed silver fox, stood guard in front of his master, protecting him.
"You want to harm my master? Over my dead body!" said the seven-tailed silver fox.
"Banji, you'll deal with this fox," said First Eagle as he leaped off his mount's back.
"Sure. It has been a while since I last ate a fox. I guess I get to taste some fox meat today," answered the demonic eagle.
Flying at a fast speed, First Eagle went over the seven-tailed silver fox and sent an eagle claw forward as he roared, "Come back!"
The eagle claw was extremely large, big enough to lift an entire mountain up.
To deal with Devouring Ghost, Linggu Haonan was forced to split his attention into two. Thus, he could not avoid the claw and was directly caught by it. He tried to struggle to no avail.
"Go down there," First Eagle shouted as he slammed Linggu Haonan to the ground below.
Bang!
Linggu Haonan was slammed into a hill, causing the hill to immediately crumble apart. First Eagle did not stop at that. With his claws still tightly locked around Linggu Haonan, he continued slamming Linggu Haonan around.
Bang! Bang!
First Eagle threw Linggu Haonan around mercilessly, badly wounding him and nearly killing him. If it wasn't for the command from Ye Chaomu to preserve the person's body, First Eagle would have been able to completely destroy Linggu Haonan with just that attack.
"Wha
t a weak ninth-stage Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator. He is completely powerless!" said First Eagle with disdain.
With the bad injuries to his body, Linggu Haonan's soul was adversely affected as well. Devouring Ghost took this chance to launch a series of intense attacks on Linggu Haonan's soul.
Linggu Haonan had been holding the advantage earlier, but now his soul was instantly devoured by Devouring Ghost. First Eagle was naturally unaware of that. He only had an odd sensation, but he did not bother paying much attention to it. If he checked, he would likely be able to see what was going on.
"Young lady, this is not the time to grieve. I have some millennia king spring water here. Feed it to the young master," said Duo Ji.
Ye Chaomu shook her head and took out a bottle with a drop of sparkling and translucent liquid in it. When she opened the bottle, a pleasant fragrance drifted out. A strong vitality was emanating from the drop of liquid, causing everyone there to feel refreshed.
Duo Ji couldn't help but to cry out in shock, "It's a ten millennia stoneclock milk!"
The ten millennia stoneclock milk was a divine natural liquid that took more than 10,000 years to form. Each drop had enough vitality to revive the dead, a true spring of life. The millennia king spring Duo Ji had was already a decent treasure, but it was nothing compared to the ten millennia stoneclock milk.
Chen Jiayan, Du Xuanhao, Murong Qing and the others were brought back by Duo Ji. When they saw the ten millennia stoneclock milk, their eyes nearly popped out in astonishment, and an intense look of longing filled their faces.
For them, a single drop of ten millennia stoneclock milk was akin to having an extra life. But they were all clear that a divine liquid like that would have nothing much to do with them. They became even more curious about Xiang Shaoyun's actual identity.
Who exactly was this young man who had attracted so many experts? Some of these people seem to be Sovereigns! Sovereigns would not exist even in tier-4 or tier-5 organizations. They are most likely members of those powerful tier-6 or tier-7 organizations.
A tier-3 organization required at least an Emperor, a tier-4 organization required at least 10 Emperors, a tier-5 organization required at least 50 Emperors and at least one peak Emperor, a tier-6 organization required at least two Sovereigns and 100 Emperors, a tier-7 organization required at least 10 Sovereigns, and so on. These were the minimum requirements for the respective tier classifications.
Chen Jiayan and the others knew well about all that. Thus, they were all wondering if Xiang Shaoyun was some young master from a tier-6 organization. He must have been a young master from at least a tier-5 organization, and an important young master at that.
They did not even dare to entertain the thought that Xiang Shaoyun was from a tier-7 organization. The world of tier-7 organizations was too far from them. Behind Chen Jiayan, Chen Zilong's gaze was focused on Ye Chaomu. Infatuation filled his eyes as he thought, So beautiful!
She was an astonishingly rare beauty. Li Yaxuan, who was beside him, was also considered a great beauty, but even she felt a sense of inferiority before Ye Chaomu.
She looked at Chen Zilong before she looked at Ye Chaomu and sighed inwardly, How can a woman so beautiful exist in this world? Looks like a powerful love rival has appeared for Qinyin.
Ye Chaomu fed the drop of ten millennia stoneclock milk into Xiang Shaoyun's mouth as she said gently, "Big brother, get better soon! Little Mu Mu is here to see you. I thought you wanted me to hunt demonic beasts for you? After you wake up, I will bring you on a hunting trip. In the past, you have always been the one bringing happiness. I will be doing the same for you from now on. I will give you anything you want, and I will kill anyone who dares to bully you! I will make you the happiest big brother in the world!"
"That's a good thought, little girl. Too bad you won't have the chance to do all that," a sinister voice suddenly rang in the air.
Chapter 329: Old Winter and Old Summer
It was almost impossible to distinguish where the voice had come from. It seemed near yet far, and it was hard to pinpoint its origin. Duo Ji immediately stood before Ye Chaomu, as if a great enemy had arrived. He then shouted at the sky, "Old Winter and Old Summer, get your ass down here. Stop feigning mystery before me."
An energy chain then shot out of his hand toward the clouds above him.
Bang!
It was an extremely terrifying attack that looked like it was going to destroy the very sky above them. The entire space above them started shaking. Suddenly, two figures appeared from the clouds. After avoiding Duo Ji's attack, they revealed themselves before the people there.
Of the two, one was an old man in a gray robe with snow white hair and a beard, his body emanating strands of frost energy. The other old man was dressed in a red robe. He was quite short, and his face was flushed red as if he was drunk. His hair was also red, and his entire body looked like a bright fireball that was hard for one to look straight at. Neither was weaker than Duo Ji. They were the late-stage Sovereigns that had been chasing after Duo Ji.
"Duo Ji, you are really capable, aren't you? You led us on such a long wild goose chase and were able to even kill two of our brothers. Today is the day you die!" said Old Summer.
Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter represented the four seasons, also the names of four renowned individuals. The two before them were respectively the Winter Ice and the Summer Flame. The other two were Spring Rain and Autumn Gold, but they had been killed by Duo Ji when they were hunting him.
That was why Duo Ji had looked so terrible when he had showed up at Ye Chaomu's place. If his four pursuers had not separated to search for him, he wouldn't even have had a chance to kill any of them. Of the four, Old Winter and Old Summer were the strongest. With both of them appearing here, Duo Ji was feeling an intense sense of pressure.
"Hmph. Today, you shall go meet your brothers in the afterlife!" Duo Ji snorted coldly and poured a mouthful of liquor into his mouth.
After drinking the mouthful of liquor, a heroic aura spread out of him as he howled with laughter and said, "Dogs of Di Batian, today I shall exterminate you!"
He then shot into the sky and attacked.
"We never feared you even back when you were at your peak strength. Now that you only have one arm left, you are dreaming if you think you can still defeat us," said Old Summer before he turned into a fireball and charged Duo Ji.
Bang! Bang!
Instantly, numerous energy explosions erupted in the sky, as if a natural calamity was happening. Clouds roiled everywhere; the entire sky seemed to be shaking. The gourd Duo Ji used to store the liquor turned into the size of a mountain and slammed at Summer Flame as if it was a weapon. The might contained within the slam was enough to flatten an entire mountain range.
No Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator could survive against such an attack. This was how dreadfully strong a late-stage Soul Foundation Realm expert was. As for Summer Flame, he wielded a fire medallion, and like a god of fire, he commanded a sea of flame, sending it toward Duo Ji. Their attacks clashed repeatedly, presenting a terrifying sight causing the hearts of the people there to thump. That was a battle between apex experts.
"In truth, we don't really care about capturing that child. But since the kid failed his mission, I shall complete the mission instead. That way, I can get rid of a future trouble for the sect master," said Winter Frost before grabbing at Xiang Shaoyun who was in Ye Chaomu's arms.
But before he could reach Xiang Shaoyun, Duo Ji sent another clump of energy blasting toward him, stopping him from touching Xiang Shaoyun.
"You want to get my young master? Over my dead body!" Duo Ji roared.
"Duo Ji, since you want to die so much, I'll send you to the afterlife first," said Winter Frost before slamming both his palms at Duo Ji.
Roiling Snow!
As his palms slammed forward, his surroundings instantly changed. Snow drifted down from the sky and transformed into a snow storm crashing right into Duo Ji. The scorchi
ng fire and chilling frost assailing Duo Ji at the same time gave him an extremely hard time.
At his peak, Duo Ji might not fear these two working together against him. But losing an arm had greatly affected his combat strength. Because of that, dealing with both of them at the same time was very difficult for the current him. It was at this moment that the Thirteen Eagles returned with Yuan Ling and the others captured.
"Thirteen Eagles, assist Guardian Duo Ji and kill the two old bastards!" commanded Ye Chaomu after landing on the ground with Xiang Shaoyun.
"Yes, young lady." The Thirteen Eagles obeyed Ye Chaomu's every command. Even though they weren't as strong as the three people in the sky, they still charged in fearlessly.
They weren't exactly charging into the battlefield rashly, however. Rather, they moved in a unique formation, moving like they were a single entity, creating an astonishing aura as 13 sources of energy converged together to become a massive demonic eagle. The eagle soared to the sky straight toward the two old men.
"A tiny firefly dares to contend against the sun and the moon? You are overestimating yourself!" said Summer Flame before aiming his fire medallion at them, sending a clump of flame crashing down at them.
Rumble! Rumble!
The clump of flame smashed into the massive eagle, and a world-shaking explosion ensued. Numerous energy shockwaves spread everywhere, destroying numerous mountains and turning numerous plants into ash.
Chen Jiayan, Du Xuanhao, and the others distanced themselves as far as they could. None of them dared to stay behind for fear of getting killed by a random shockwave from the battle.
As for Ye Chaomu, she stood her ground with Xiang Shaoyun. When the shockwaves reached her, an indescribable energy barrier appeared around her to protect both her and Xiang Shaoyun. On the other hand, the Thirteen Eagles suffered greatly from the attack. They were weaker than Summer Flame, and one attack was all it took to wound them badly.
Of the Thirteen Eagles, only First Eagle, Second Eagle, and Third Eagle had reached the Soul Foundation Realm. However, they were only at the first- and second-stage of the realm. As for the other 10, they were only Dragon Ascension Realm cultivators. Even with all of them working together, they were still no match for Summer Flame.